Historic Newspapers: Search Results

Robert Smalls leads fellow slaves to freedom... The USS Planter...

NEW YORK WEEKLY TRIBUNE, May 24, 1862 

* General David Hunter order
* Emancipation of slaves
* Abraham Lincoln rebuffs
* Robert Smalls - born in slavery
* Leads fellow slaves to freedom

Page 2 begins with: "Gen. Hunter Overruled".  This concerns the controversial situation where Hunter pronounced slaves free in Florida, Georgia & South Carolina, previous to Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation
President Lincoln did not rescind Hunter's order because he was against emancipating the…

FRANK LESLIE'S ILLUSTRATED, New York, June 7, 1862

* General David Hunter's Emancipation order
* Abraham Lincoln rebuffs (nullifies

The front page announces President Lincoln's proclamation nullifying General Hunter's General Order regarding emancipation, headed: "Important Proclamation by the President" which carries over to page 2, where signed: Abraham Lincoln. Also on page 2 is the original proclamation signed by: David Hunter. 
This was a controversial event in the Civil War in…

NATIONAL INTELLIGENCER, Washington, D.C., Sept. 23, 1862  

* Emancipation Proclamation
* President Abraham Lincoln
* Freedom for enslaved - slaves
* Best publication to be had (very rare)

Page 2 begins with the Emancipation Proclamation, from the city where it was issued.
The Emancipation Proclamation was a presidential proclamation that changed the federal legal status of more than 3.5 million enslaved African Americans in the designated areas of the South from slave to free. As…

THE CRISIS, Columbus, Ohio, Jan. 7, 1863 

* President Abraham Lincoln 
* Emancipation Proclamation 
* Spiteful editorial by Democrats

A terrific issue, as the front page contains a printing of Lincoln's famous Emancipation Proclamation by which he freed the slaves in the slave-holding states, signed by him in type: Abraham Lincoln.
But the notable content is not the document but the terrific editorial which precedes it.
This being a pro-South newspaper, despite being printed in the…

NEW YORK WORLD, May 20, 1862 

* General David Hunter's Emancipation order
* Abraham Lincoln rebuffs (nullifies)
* Robert Smalls & companions to be compensated

The front page begins with column heads: "PRESIDENT'S PROCLAMATION" "Gen. Hunter's Proclamation Void" "The Power of Declaring Slaves Free Belongs to the President" "An Appeal To The Border States" "Gradual Abolition of Slavery Urged" "How the Proclamation is Received".
The related text takes most of the first column, headed:…

HARPER'S NEW MONTHLY MAGAZINE, New York, November, 1862  

* President Abraham Lincoln
* Emancipation Proclamation

Near the back of the issue under "Monthly Record of Current Events" is a report on the Emancipation Proclamation. "On the 22d of September the President issued a very important proclamation. ... that he should at the next meeting of Congress again urge that pecuniary compensation be tendered to the loyal slave States should they choose to abolish slavery either gradually or…

 NEW YORK TIMES, May 20, 1862 

* General David Hunter's Emancipation order
* Abraham Lincoln rebuffs (nullifies)
* Robert Smalls & companions to be compensated

Page one has: "Gen. Hunter's Order Repudiated by the President" followed by: "He Pronounces it Void and of No Effect" "The Policy of the Administration Reiterated." The pronouncement is signed in type: Abraham Lincoln.
This was the controversial situation where Hunter pronounced slaves free in Florida, Georgia & South Carolina,…

THE CRISIS, Columbus, Ohio, March 12, 1862  

* Battle of Fort Donelson - Tennessee
* Abraham Lincoln & emancipation
* State of Deseret - Utah - Mormons

The front page begins with: "Are the Abolition, Free Negroites to Force this War into One of Emancipation?" which is a prophetic article. Also: "Sec. Chase Working Slaves on Southern Plantations". Inside has over half a page on the continued: "Reflections On The Present Crisis".
Another page is mostly taken up with: "Constitution of…

NEW YORK WEEKLY TRIBUNE, September 27, 1862 

* Emancipation Proclamation
* President Abraham Lincoln

Page 2 contains the full texts of the Emancipation Proclamation, perhaps the most significant Presidential pronouncement of the entire Civil War wherein Lincoln declared all slaves free.
Headed: "A Proclamation By the President of the United States" the document begins at the bottom half of the first column and takes the top half of the second column and is signed in type by the…

THE CRISIS, Columbus, Ohio, Sept. 24, 1862  

* Emancipation Proclamation
* President Abraham Lincoln
* Rare pro-Confederate publication

Given the focus of this controversial newspaper, being supportive of the Southern cause while publishing in the North, it is particularly noteworthy that this issue contains on page five the Emancipation Proclamation whereby President Lincoln would free the slaves on January 1 of the coming year.
The introductory subheads would be of no surprise as…

PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER, Sept. 29, 1862  Among the front page column heads on the Civil War are: "THE LATEST NEWS ! " "From General McClellan's Army" "The Loss in the Late Battles" "Interesting From Sharpsburg" "A Dispatch from Gen. Pope" "Expedition Down the Mississippi" "The War In Missouri" "Speech of Colonel Hamilton" "The War In Kentucky" & more. 
Page 7 includes: "The President & The Chicago Delegation" "The President's Views of an Emancipation Proclamation--Why an Emancipation…

HARPER'S WEEKLY, New York, October 4, 1862  Page 3 contains the complete and historically significant printing of the Emancipation Proclamation signed in type by the President: Abraham Lincoln, & headed: "The Abolition of Slavery--A Proclamation". There is also a nice page 2 editorial concerning the Emancipation Proclamation headed: "Slavery Practically Abolished" which takes 1 1/2 columns.
Also within the issue is a nice full ftpg: "General McClellan Entering Frederick, Maryland"; nice…

THE NEW YORK TIMES, April 17, 1872

* Emancipation of slaves
* District of Columbia
* Slavery anniversary

The front page has one column headings: "Emancipation Proclamation" "Celebration of the Abolition of Slavery in the District of Columbia"
Other news of the day. Complete in 8 pages, nice condition.

DAILY NATIONAL INTELLIGENCER, Washington D.C., May 5, 1849  The top of page 3 has: "Emancipation In Kentucky" which has a report from the Convention of the Friends of Emancipation. This is followed by: "Late From California" which has half a column of reports concerning events related to the gold rush.
Four pages, very nice condition.

THE CRISIS, Columbus, Ohio, Oct. 3, 1861  

* President Abraham Lincoln
* General John C. Fremont

This was an anti-war newspaper that insisted slavery should not be abolished, so consequently much content has an anti-North bias.

NEW YORK WEEKLY TRIBUNE March 15, 1862 

* Abraham Lincoln on Emancipation
* Battle of the Monitor and Merrimack (CSS Virginia)

A wonderful issue on the historic naval battle between the Monitor & the Merrimack, with much on other war reports as well.
The front page has a nice Civil War map: "Field Of Operations On the Potomac" with related reports as well as: "Capture of Brunswick, Ga." "Fernandina Also Captured" and more.
Page 2 is almost entirely taken up with the naval actions at…

THE CRISIS, Columbus, Ohio, April 30, 1862  

* Capture of New Orleans, Louisiana
* Emancipation of slaves in D.C.

Among the articles within are: "A Serious Talk with Serious Men" "Emancipation of Slaves" "...on the Bill to abolish Slavery in the District of Columbia; "War News of the Week" "Free Negroes in Ohio" "The Massacre at Lee's Mills" "Traffic In Human Flesh--A White Child Sold in the city of Rochester" "White Citizens Wrongfully Imprisoned" From Pittsburg Landing" "Confirmation…

HARPER'S WEEKLY, New York, Jan. 4, 1902 Frontpage photo "A Memory of Emancipation Day"; Ice Hocky and Its Players; a colored print "Jan Kubelik - The Bohemian Violinist Now Touring The United States"; a page of photos of Marconi's Latest Experiments in Wireless Telegraphy; a page of photos Winners at the First annual Sow of the Ladies' Kennel Association of America; fullpage "An Eighteenth-Century Postman"; A Christmas Pilgrimage; Lord Rosebery and the Future including a fullpage photo;…

NEW YORK TIMES, Aug. 2, 1865  The top of the front page has: "EMANCIPATION JUBILEE" "Great Rejoicing Among the Colored People" "20,000 Jubilants Celebrate Their Souls in Brooklyn" "Addresses of Wm. Howard Day, Fred. Douglass, and Rev. Mr. Pennington" "The Praying Pic-Nic and the Dancing Darkies" "A Great Day, No Trouble, Fun, Frolic, Music and Happiness".
This text takes one-third of the front page and 1 1/2 columns on the back page. The "Speech of Mr. Douglass" is on the back page.
August 1 was…

NEW YORK TRIBUNE, Nov. 18, 1862  Among the front page column heads on the Civil War are: "Rebel Evacuation of Snicker's Gap" "Cavalry Expedition to the Shenandoah" "The Blockade of Charleston Harbor" and more.
One report: "The Proclamation--The Contrabands--White Slaves in the South" which refers to Lincoln's recent Emancipation Proclamation.
Some text includes: "...soldiers are almost universally in favor of the late proclamation...Large numbers of slaves are used about Corinth...They have…

NEW YORK HERALD, Feb. 13, 1863  Among there front page column heads on the Civil War are: "News From Fortress Monroe" "The Rebel Privateers" and page 5 has: "The Missouri Slave Emancipation Bill Also Passed" "Organization of the Montana Territory" & page 8 includes: "All Able Bodied Negroes to be Drafted" "Disloyal Persons to be Sent to Dixie" and more.
Eight pages, nice condition.

HARPER'S WEEKLY, New York, Jan. 12, 1867  The front page is taken up with a print: "Isaac Watts and His Mother at the Prison-Gate" which has an accompanying article. 
The feature of the issue is a letter to the editor headed: "Frederick Douglass" which provides some detail of a man who encountered him as a passenger on a railroad train. One portion notes: "...I became convinced that there was but one man of his color who could talk as he did, and that was Frederick Douglass...my thoughts were…

THE CRISIS, Columbus, Ohio, Sept. 19, 1861  This was an anti-war newspaper that insisted slavery should not be abolished, so consequently much content has an anti-North bias.

HARPER'S WEEKLY, New York, January 17, 1863  Certainly the most historic content would be the page 2 complete printing of: "By the President of the United States of America - A Proclamation" which is the full text of the Emancipation Proclamation, signed in type by the President: Abraham Lincoln.
Half of the front page: "The Teamsters' Duel" showing two Black men with horse whips. The other half of the front page shows: "The Army of the Potomac in Hunts".
Perhaps the most notable print is a…

HARPER'S WEEKLY, New York, Jan. 12, 1867  The front page is taken up with a print: "Isaac Watts and His Mother at the Prison-Gate" which has an accompanying article.
The feature of the issue is a letter to the editor headed: "Frederick Douglass" which provides some detail of a man who encountered him as a passenger on a railroad train. One portion notes: "...I became convinced that there was but one man of his color who could talk as he did, and that was Frederick Douglass...my thoughts were…

HARPER'S NEW MONTHLY MAGAZINE, New York, February, 1863  Towards the back of the issue under the "Monthly Record of Current Events" is content pertaining to the newly enacted Emancipation Proclamation.
Other items within the issue are "A Californian in Iceland" which includes several illustrations; "The Gun-Boat Essex" and many more articles and illustrations.
Complete in 144 pages, disbound without outer wrappers, 6 1/4 by 9 1/2 inches, binding pin holes at the blank spine, otherwise in…

HARPER'S WEEKLY, New York, January 30, 1864  The most desired & notable print is likely the full page captioned: "Emancipated Slaves, White and Colored" showing one man with a brand on his forehead.
The front page shows the: "Ruins of the Church of the Compania, at Santiago, Chili, After the Conflagration". Inside has a full page: "Snowy Morning--On Picket" showing a Civil War soldier in the cold & snow. A very nice & displayable doublepage centerfold: "Central Park In Winter" shows 11…

HARPER'S WEEKLY, New York, January 24, 1863  This issue contains a fine centerfold by Thomas Nast: "The Emancipation of the Negroes, January, 1863--The Past and the Future" with several vignettes. This also has an accompanying article which explains the illustration and references the famous Mr. Pierce M. Butler slave auction which took place on March 2-3, 1859 outside of Savannah, Georgia (The "Weeping Day" auction). This was the largest selling of humans in the United States -- 436 men,…

HARPER'S WEEKLY, New York, April 20, 1872  Full ftpg. is a print of: 'The late Samuel Morse' with a related article inside.
Other prints include a half page: 'The burial of the late Gen. Anderson at West Point Cemetery' and also: "Lincoln, The Emancipator; two-thirds page Nast print: "See, Where His 
Grace Stands 'Tween Two Clergymen!"; full page print: "The New State Department Building at the National Capital"; full page Nast cartoon: "Will Robinson Crusoe (Sumner) Forsake His Man…

HARPER'S WEEKLY, New York, March 14, 1863 The full front page is a print of: "Teaching the Negro Recruits the Use of the Minie Rifle", a print showing Black soldiers.
Other nice prints within include a full page with three prints and a map: "Beulah Battery, at the Junction of Burnside and Vernon Rivers", "The Rebel Turtle Ram Just Launched at Savannah", "The Rebel Steamer 'Nashville' Lying at the Railway Bridge, on the Ogeechee River" and "Map of the Environs of Savannah".
Also a one-third…

HARPER'S WEEKLY, New York, Feb. 7, 1874  The prime print in this periodical famous for its many illustrations is the full page captioned: "Station House Lodgers" done by the famed artist Winslow Homer. There is a related article on the facing page.
Other prints within this issue are the full ftpg. political cartoon by Thomas Nast captioned: "The Emancipator of Labor & the Honest Working People", a 3/4 pg. of: "Drilling Monks in a Monastery", half pg: "Secret Societies at Yale College", a…

HARPER'S WEEKLY, New York, February 21, 1863  The entire front page is a great (and rather famous) illustration of: "Mr. and Mrs. Charles S. Stratton (General Tom Thumb And Wife)." taken from a Brady photograph. Page 2 has an article on them.
Other prints within include a full page: "The Effects of the Proclamation--Freed Negroes Coming Into Our Lines At New Bern, North Carolina" showing many slaves on the road as a result of Lincoln's recent Emancipation Proclamation. Also a full page with 2…

USA TODAY, November 5, 2008  This 48 page newspaper has a nice two line banner headline on the front page: "America makes history, Obama Wins! " with subheads and nice color photo of Obama with family. Much more on the inside pages in the 1st section. (see)
Nice condition.

Our post on the History's Newsstand Blog:

Regardless of your view on the recent U.S. election, one thing is for certain: Barack Obama’s victory was a very significant and historic event! If you collect historic

NEW YORK TIMES, June 21, 1866  

* Very 1st Juneteenth anniversary observed
* Jubilee - Emancipation - Freedom Day
* Galveston, Texas celebration

Period reports of the first "Juneteenth" event on June 19, 1865, when Union troops entered Galveston, Texas and announced to more than 250,000 enslaved blacks that they were free, are almost impossible to find.
However, we did discover a somewhat oblique mention of the first anniversary of what was then known in Texas as "Jubilee Day", which would be…

NEW YORK TRIBUNE, July 19, 1862 

* Abraham Lincoln appeal to border states
* Pleads for emancipation of slaves - slavery

The back page begins with a very notable address by President Lincoln headed: "The President's Appeal To The Border States". 

EMANCIPATOR, Boston, Aug. 12, 1846  A newspaper focused on emancipation: the freedom for slaves. Articles include: "Another Suicide by a Slave" "Results of Emancipation" "Law vs. Philanthropy" "The Great N.W. Liberty Convention" "Texas" and much more.
Four pages, good condition.

THE ANTI-SLAVERY BUGLE, Salem, Ohio, May 11, 1850  

* Rare Anti Slavery publication - slaves
* Emancipation of the enslaved - abolition 
* Over 10 years prior to the Civil War 

The motto printed in the masthead reads: "No Union With Slaveholders", which sets the tone for the newspaper's theme. This is one of the less common anti-slavery newspapers we have encountered.
This issue has a wealth of fine, anti-slavery-themed articles including: "Colored Children Entitled to the Benefits of…

THE FREE SOUTH, Beaufort, South Carolina, Jan. 10, 1863  

* Rare Union occupation publication

On November 7, 1861, the Union Navy seized control of Port Royal Harbor in South Carolina, securing a beachhead for a new kind of journalism--the occupation newspaper. Whereas many of the homegrown South Carolina newspapers defended secession and championed the military victories of the Confederate States Army, the Republican newspapers that sprang up in Beaufort County aimed to bolster the…

EMANCIPATOR & WEEKLY CHRONICLE, Boston, Dec. 11, 1844  

* Rare anti-slavery publication
* Abolition movement - free slaves

One of the less common anti-slavery newspapers with content as you might suspect. 
This abolitionist newspaper was first published in New York City and by this time in Boston. It was founded as the official newspaper of the American Anti-Slavery Society, and from 1840 to 1850 it was published by the Liberty Party.
The Liberty Party was an early advocate of the…

FREDERICK DOUGLASS' PAPER, Rochester, New York, Sept. 8, 1854  

* Extremely rare publication

We are pleased to offer this exceedingly rare--and highly desirable--newspaper by the famed Frederick Douglass. This weekly title is the continuation of his newspaper "North Star" which began in 1847.
Among the articles: "The Results of Emancipation" "The Fugitive Slave Act--Proposition For Its Repeal" "What Becomes of the Free Colored People" "Colored Emigration Convention" "Aid To Fugitives"…

THE ANTI-SLAVERY BUGLE, Salem, Ohio, April 27, 1850  

* Rare Anti Slavery publication - slaves
* Emancipation of the enslaved - abolition 
* Over 10 years prior to the Civil War 

The motto printed in the masthead reads: "No Union With Slaveholders", which sets the tone for the newspaper's theme. This is one of the less common anti-slavery newspapers we have encountered.
This issue has a wealth of fine, anti-slavery-themed articles including a poem: "To Slaveholders & Their Allies" by John. G.…

NEW YORK DAILY TRIBUNE, August 26, 1865

* Horace Greeley letter - his opinion of African Americans
* Andersonville prison trial... Henry Wirz

The most historically significant content is the intriguing letter on page 4: "A Letter To the Hon. A. O. P. Nicholson", signed in type: H. G., for Horace Greeley.
Following the end of the Civil War, this discussion addressed the physical, intellectual, and emotional condition of African Americans now that they were free. The exchange with Nicholson, often…

THE LIBERATOR, Boston, MA 1861-65 (with minor water-staining or other minor imperfections which make them somewhat 2nd-rate)

* Ornate masthead
* Anti-Slavery Title
* edited by William Lloyd Garrison

See the photo below for the terrific masthead of this famous anti-slavery title. The ornate woodcut in the masthead features three scenes: a slave auction, an image of Jesus breaking the bonds of the oppressors, and a family about to depart for their journey to emancipation. Much of the…

BOSTON DAILY ADVERTISER, Nov. 12, 1863 

* Second Battle of Rappahannock Station
* George G. Meade vs. Robert E. Lee
* Abraham Lincoln letter re. emancipation

The top of the ftpg. has column heads on the Union victory at the Battle of the Rappahannock: "From Gen. Meade's Army" "Official Report of the Passage of the Rappahannock" "Presentation of Battle Flags to General Meade" which includes: "A Congratulatory Order" signed in type: Major-Gen. Meade.
Page 2 has a letter from Lincoln…

THE LIBERATOR, Boston, 1861-65 (first rate)  See the photo below for the terrific masthead of this famous anti-slavery title. The ornate woodcut in the masthead features three scenes: a slave auction, an image of Jesus breaking the bonds of the oppressors, and a family about to depart for their journey to emancipation. Much of the content concerns slavery and the anti-slavery movement. Edited by the famed emancipator, William Lloyd Garrison.
A full-size, 4 page newspaper.

THE CRISIS, Columbus, Ohio, Feb. 25, 1863  Described as "The Hottest Rebel Sheet to be found in the North or the South", this newspaper opposed the war and attracted the hatred of the Republicans and the Lincoln administration. It insisted that slavery could not be prohibited by law. So obnoxious was this paper to Unionists that it was denied circulation in some cities. In 1863 the press was raided by a hateful mob.
Among the various articles are: "The Poor Negro" "The Law Compelling the…

DAILY RICHMOND EXAMINER, Virginia, Sept. 24, 1862  

* Battle of Antietam, Sharpsburg, Maryland
* Rare Confederate title from the rebel capital

A terrific and rare issue, as the front page has a nice account of the Battle of Antietam (referred to as Sharpsburg by the Confederates). Simply great to have reports on this "bloodiest day of fighting" of the entire war--and a victory claimed by both sides (although essentially a draw)--appear on the front page of the newspaper from the Confederate…